Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Elokim Sheli: Uzi Chitman to Kinderlach

There is a very catchy old Israeli song that I like, "Ratziti Sheteda," aka "Elokim Sheli" (Hebrew lyrics with English translation here). Here is the author, the legendary Uzi Chitman, singing it:


This song has been sung by various singers in various versions. Some have changed the words (a little or a lot) and most have introduced their own style. By far the most bizarre is this version by Kinderlach and Yisrael Rand. I'm not a fan of bans, but now I completely understand the Lipa ban. This is just wrong. Who do Kinderlach think they are? New Kids on the Block? (Yes, I'm a hypocrite. Sue me.) And I also thought it strange they would sing a song I thought was a bit sacreligious.


My favorite is the Hebrew-English version by Liel Kolet. I'm not a fan of Israelis singing in English, but Liel pulls it off. Note the changes in the English.

In this version by Hadag Nachash the original is barely recognizable:

There is also this version by Harel Skaat and Roni Duani, but it isn't anything special or unusual. Frankly its boring, particularly in light of the above versions.


Finally, in sign language:

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